Growth
by Lovely Cup
Summary: A series of oneshots surrounding Drew and May as they grow up together, Contestshipping.
1. Braids

Braids

Every morning, after she got up and had her breakfast, she would ask her mother to braid her hair. At the beginning of the year, they were just two short little tails that hung from her head. They were scraggly little things, tiny and limp. She loved them nonetheless. She would skip off to school, her braids bouncing against her backpack, whipping through the air.

She'd twirl them between her fingers and chew on the ends during class. They rested comfortably on her shoulders when she wasn't fiddling with them. And when she went back home, she'd undo her braids and go to sleep.

Rinse and repeat.

By the end of third grade, her braids hung down to her stomach. She loved her long hair. It swished around her neck and swept over her shoulders, like a beautiful curtain. She swore to herself that she would never cut it off.

On a day that was just like any other, a new boy appeared in her class.

"We have a new student in our class today. His name is Drew. Please make him feel welcome, kids!"

He was seated directly behind her.

Drew was the type of boy who enjoyed a bit of trouble. He was a trickster and a joker. He stirred up drama, then weaseled his way out of a punishment with a heart melting smile. Adults loved him for his innocent smile, and the students loved him for his troublemaking antics.

She couldn't stand him. His dishonesty, his teasing remarks, everything he did maddened her. He couldn't stand her either. She was too rule abiding and closed off for him. Her smile was reserved for special people, and his was shared for the world.

When paired together to do an assignment, the two would huff and puff at each other until they were assigned new partners. They simply couldn't get along. Every day was a struggle. Another argument, another fight, another trip to the principal's office, another call to their parents.

Months slowly trudged by, and Christmas came. The class was making little paper snowflakes to decorate the classroom. The teacher demonstrated the proper folding and cutting technique, then set the kids loose.

The classroom floor was soon littered with paper scraps and snippity sounds. The scissors sliced through the paper and soon snowflakes started to pile up on desks, each with a different pattern and shape. The students chatted and laughed.

Drew was the first to finish.

Bored, he spun the scissors in his hands. There was nothing to do.

His eyes scanned the room until they fell on the back of May's head, right in front of him. Today, her hair was in braids. Just like every other day. They were tied with a black hairband with little bells on them that jingled with each step she took. Almost like a cat collar.

Braids were so boring, he thought. Why did she keep wearing her hair like that? Other girls in the class had long outgrown them, yet May stubbornly refused to change her hairstyle.

They were awfully ugly.

He decided to do her a favor, and get rid of them. He could see her flushed, angry face already. His hand darted forward, and with a single snip, one of her braids tumbled down onto the floor.

At first, it was quiet.

May swiveled around in her seat, confused. She patted the back of her head, and felt the nothingness where her hair used to be. Slowly, she shifted her eyes to the floor, where her hair lay in a lump. Her eyes widened. She looked up at Drew, who was trying to stifle a laugh, and failing.

She was at a loss for words. Her mouth opened, but nothing came out. She felt the wetness in her eyes, and willed her tears not to come out.

Then, she started to cry. Shoulder shaking sobs, tears dripping down her rosy cheeks. Droplets clung to her eyelashes and blurred her vision.

Drew's laughter subsided. He looked at her, in shock and slightly scared. May didn't cry. She was tough and could handle anything. It was just hair, just a joke, so why was she crying like someone had died? It wasn't funny anymore. Now, he just felt guilty.

The teacher noticed. She rushed over in her high heels, saw the tangle of hair on the ground, and immediately sent them both to the office.

She was still crying. Even on the walk there, her tears wouldn't stop. He didn't know what to do. Was he supposed to pat her shoulder? Would that be weird, since he was the one who caused the crying? It was just a stupid joke, he kept saying to himself. It was her fault for taking it so seriously. So why did he still feel bad? He was tired feeling so horrible. He didn't do anything wrong.

"Stop crying," he told her.

She paused for a moment, then looked up at him, her eyes still wet and red.

"Crying is useless. It won't get you anywhere," he continued.

"You're useless," she retorted, then sniffed, wiping her nose on her sleeve.

He sighed dramatically. "Why are you making such a big deal out of this? It's just a braid."

After all, braids were just strands of hair. Why someone would be so attached to their hair, he couldn't understand.

"I love my braids.." she murmured under her breath. "I'm sure you'd cry if you lost something you loved too."

He scoffed.

"You don't love anything?" He felt her eyes on him.

"Not really," he responded.

"What about your mom and dad?" she persisted.

"I guess."

"It must be sad, not to love," she said softly.

He had no response.

The rest of the day passed in a dull blur. They talked to the principal, he wrote a half hearted apology letter, and they went home.

She stayed up all night staring at the girl in the mirror. Her uneven, choppy haircut looked ridiculous. She couldn't wear it down, in her trademark braids, or even a single, thick braid down her back. There was nothing she could do, but to try to even it out. The scissors sliced as her brunette locks fell to the floor.

Her hair didn't even reach her shoulders now.

Night fell and morning came. She got up and had her breakfast, but her mother didn't braid her hair. She didn't skip off to school. Her braids didn't bounce against her backpack, and they didn't whip through the air. They didn't rest on her shoulders during class, and she didn't chew on the ends.

She stayed home that day. She didn't bother changing out of her pajamas and watched cartoons until her eyes felt sore. Her hands would float to her shoulders to toy with her braids, only to realize that they were gone.

At one o clock sharp, the doorbell rang.

She reluctantly left her spot on the couch and swung the door open.

There stood Drew, still dressed in his school uniform, face flushed, holding a small Roselia plushie.

"It's for you." He shoved the plushie into her hands, as he avoided her eyes.

She looked at the little Roselia. It was awfully careworn. One of its eyes had fallen off, and someone had sewn a black button on where it's old eye should have been. Its seams were ripping and the stuffing had started to fall out. One of his roses was missing as well.

"Why?" she asked.

"Something I love. In exchange for taking away something you love," he explained.

"Thanks."

She handed the plushie back to Drew. "But I can't take it."

"I want you to have it." He passed it back to her. "You need something else to love."

Her mouth slowly curled into a small smile. She hugged the Roselia to her chest and kissed its forehead.

She didn't miss her braids so much.

* * *

Oh gosh. Sorry they're so out of character. Please rate and review!


	2. Swings

It was autumn. The weather was cold and the wind was brisk. Leaves danced in the air and fluttered to the ground, coating everything in a warm, cheery glow. Morning sunlight filtered in through her window as she stretched her arms above her head.

A yawn escaped her mouth.

Today was the day she had been waiting for her whole life. The day that she would receive her first Pokemon. She could scream for joy.

Where she lived, most kids had gotten their starters at age 10, and set off for their Pokemon journey.

She was already at the ripe old age of 12. Her dad, being the protective type, had banned her from getting her first Pokemon, telling her that she was "too young" and that the world was "too dangerous for a ten year old girl."

Well, she wasn't a little girl anymore. She could travel on her own now, and her dad couldn't tell her what to do. With her trusty Pokemon at her side, she would be safe. She was beyond excited.

She shot a quick glance at the clock. 7:21. Perfect. She changed out of her pajamas, brushed her shoulder length hair, and rushed out of the door. Breakfast was a useless meal, anyways.

Her feet pounded against the ground as she ran down the gravel road. Each step brought her a few feet closer to her destination. The sky was a dazzling blue and the air was crisp and fresh. The wind tangled her hair into knots.

She skidded to a stop in front of a small blue house. Taking care to not step on the small rosebushes planted in the front yard, she jogged up to the porch and rang the doorbell. Her foot tapped impatiently against the ground.

Where is he?

Her finger poked the doorbell once more.

A male voice grumbled, "Calm down, I'm coming!"

The door swung open to reveal an irritated young boy. He ran his hand through his unruly hair.

"Hey, May," he said.

"Come on, Drew, let's go!" she said. Ever since the whole braid incident, the two of them had become friends. She didn't know how it had happened; they just suddenly started to hate each other less, and soon they were playing together during recess and trading embarrassing stories. Their personalities had rubbed off on each other. She had become more outgoing and social, and he had become less rude and more reserved.

She grabbed his wrist and pulled him out the door. "Don't you know what day it is? It's the day I finally get my first Pokemon! I'm so excited, I feel like I could just burst! Were you this excited when you first got Surskit? I'd be happy with any Pokemon, really, but I'd love to get an Eevee, they're just so cute-"

"Pipe down, will you?" He clapped a hand over her mouth.

"Mmmffphh!" She struggled to talk.

"The lab is only a few feet away. Just be quiet until then, okay?" He unclasped his hand from her mouth.

She sulked and scuffed her shoes against the ground.

Side by side, in the early morning, they walked down the road. One boy and one girl, the sun rising behind them.

* * *

Soon, they reached the Pokemon lab.

They opened the door and walked into a giant room. Weird, there were almost no people there.

She rushed towards the Professor, eager to receive her Pokemon.

"Hi Professor! I'm here to get my first Pokemon! Where are the starters?" She glanced back and forth across the room. There were tons of test tubes and notepads, but where were the Pokeballs?

The man, slightly startled, laughed sheepishly, and scratched the back of his head. "Ah...actually…"

She gazed up at him with a questioning look.

"...I ran out of starters."

Her face fell.

"You came kind of late, see. All the other trainers came at 7:00 sharp, and took everything," he said, looking apologetic.

Her bottom lip started to quiver, and her face crumpled up.

"Hey, but don't worry! Really!" He frantically waved his arms in front of his face. "I bet have something. See, right here, I've got," he fumbled through his pockets, "oh, look!" He pulled a Pokeball out of his lab coat. He tossed it up in the air, releasing the Pokemon inside.

A small Wurmple popped out. It was a tragic thing. It was the runt of its litter; its body was a pale pink, and its spikes had not yet formed. It made a weird mewing sound, similar to a dying cat.

She cringed at the sight of it. She couldn't possibly have to take this starter Pokemon. It was so...ugly. So not-cute.

The Professor laughed sheepishly. "Ah, I know it really isn't the average starter Pokemon...but it's great nonetheless, right? What do you say? Will you take this Wurmple as your starter?"

The little thing's eyes shone up at her expectantly.

She wanted to say no so badly. She had really wanted a cute little Eevee to travel with. At least Eevees had fur, unlike this thing. What did Wurmples even have? Bug skin? Ew, gross. She hated bugs. She would rather wait another year than take this thing with her. But she couldn't. That would be rude. Plus, her mother would yell at her for not being grateful for what was given to her.

"...Alright," she said reluctantly. "I'll take it."

Wurmple looked happy, sort of. It did a weird little dance.

"Great!" Birch beamed at her. "Here's its Pokeball." He shoved the tiny capsule at her. "May you go on great adventures together!" He dashed away to help another late trainer.

She stared at the Wurmple on the ground, then at the little capsule in her hand. "Wurmple, return!" she called out. A red light flashed and Wurmple happily disappeared into its Pokeball. She sighed, and shoved the ball into her pocket.

Drew, who had been silent the entire time, looked at her strangely.

Her face, so bright and cheery ten minutes ago, now had on a disappointed frown.

"Let's go," she mumbled.

"Where to?" he asked.

"I dunno," she responded, turning towards the door.

* * *

Somehow, they had ended up at the swing sets at the park. Two worn plastic seats connected to rusted metal chains, hung from the poles. She plopped down in one, and so did he.

The swing sets were so old, it felt like they would collapse at any minute. But that was part of the fun. She could swing so high, she felt like falling. It was nice being so high up. She could see the forests surrounding her town, and the rivers and skies and valleys. It was all so beautiful. Leaves drifted down onto her lap, but she didn't mind.

She fiddled with the stem of the leaf in her lap. It looked like a maple.

Out of the blue, she asked, "Drew, do you remember the time you got your first Pokemon?"

"Yeah. My mom gave me my Surskit on my tenth birthday. She wrapped him in a little box and when I opened it, he popped out. Probably the best birthday gift I've ever gotten." His legs pumped back and forth, sending him high into the sky.

"The best birthday gift ever, huh..." she said to herself. "It must be nice, getting the Pokemon of your dreams."

"Surskit definitely wasn't my dream Pokemon." Seeing the confused look on her face, he continued. "He was so weak and tiny. He could hardly stand on his legs, he kept falling down." He let go of the chains and hopped off of the swing, landing on his feet.

"Surskit seemed like a horrible starter at first. I didn't know why my mom had decided to give me such a weak, useless thing. I wanted something cool, like an Absol, or Trapinch." He dusted himself off.

"But Surskit was the Pokemon I ended up with. At first, I didn't like him. I wanted a different starter, any starter. I thought that I would always be weaker and worse off because I had a worse Pokemon. But I trained with him, I played with him, and soon he was my best friend. And yeah, he's not super strong or anything, but I wouldn't trade him for any Pokemon, no matter how rare or legendary. When you love someone, you don't care about that sort of stuff."

He looked down at his shoes, his hair shielding his eyes.

She slowed her swing to a stop and smiled.

"I get what you mean, Drew."

He looked up, flustered. "Y-you do?"

She nodded. "Yeah. My dad's a gym leader, so he doesn't get to come home much. He's always busy at work. But when he does, he always brings back a gift. Once, he got me a pair of neon pink socks with sequins and sparkles and everything. They were so ugly. But Dad put a lot of thought into getting them for me, yknow? And I really love my dad, so I wore them." She shrugged. "Love can change things."

The redness from his face slowly faded, and he laughed.

"Yeah, it can."

A faint smile appeared on her face.

She stood up and rustled around in her jean pockets, until she found her Pokeball. "Come on out, Wurmple!"

In a flash of light, the Pokemon appeared. Still small, still weak, and still weird. Her eyes glowed hopefully, and her little mouth opened in what looked like a smile.

She wasn't as ugly as she remembered. Actually, she was kind of cute.

Just give her a chance, she told herself. She opened her arms, welcoming her in.

"Hi there, Wurmple. I have a feeling that we're going to be good friends."

* * *

This chapter feels so different from the first. Sorry about the lack of romance, the next one is full of it (I swear). Reviews are loved! 3


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